F R I E N D S
by GalacticSaz
Summary: Alfred had to stop showing up at his door, especially in the rain. Wasn't it obvious by now? He was happy with Gilbert, and he would never see Alfred that way. They were just friends. [Features some words/phrases in other languages, courtesy of Google translate]


This makes it twice in one week. Alfred was stood on his doorstep, soaked to the bone, and grinning like an idiot. Hadn't he made it obvious by now? Alfred was a dear friend, yes. They've known each other since Al was ten after all. But, that is as far as his feelings for the other blonde goes. At most, he sees the other like a brother. There's no way he could ever think of dating him, and he's apologised for that too many times to count this month alone.

A sigh escaped his lips as he listened to the American ramble again. His eyes were shining with an emotion Arthur would rather he not point his direction. Apparently though, his words don't seem to stick in Alfred's head. He really wished the other would just _listen_ to him already.

"Artie! Are you alright?!"

A voice called from further in the house. Alfred's face dropped instantly, making Arthur feel a little bad. However, it's not like Arthur hasn't already told the younger man that he was in a relationship. He even introduced them! Just the other day they all went for drinks. Though, Arthur doesn't overly remember the event himself. He may have gotten carried away. He was later told that Alfred had hit on him endlessly while he was intoxicated and when he offered to carry the bushy browed man home, he had punched the man in his face before asking his significant other to carry him to their bed.

"Yes Gilbert, I'm alright! I'll be back in a minute!"

Yet another sigh broke past his lips as he turned back to the downtrodden Alfred. Said blonde staring intently at the floor by Arthur's feet. Then, Al's head snapped up to look at him, eyes shining with admiration and determination. Arthur actually _winced_ at the look. He _really_ wished Alfred would at least try to move on.

"A hero never gives up so, I won't give up either!"

"Alfred, please understand. I only see you as a brother at most, and I highly doubt that will ever change. I'm sorry."

The light didn't fade from Alfred's eyes, confirming that every word had gone in one ear and out the other. Arthur's fist clench at his side, brows furrowing together in irritation. This was starting to get ridiculous.

The younger blonde turned away, making his way down the path to Arthur's house and towards the gate. His hand met the wood of the entryway before he turned back, grin on his face.

"You can say that all you want, but I'll change your mind one day! Love ya Arthur!"

With that, he left. Arthur stood at his front door a moment longer, closing said object in a daze. After a few more seconds, he groaned loudly and slammed his head on the wall by the door. At the sound, Gilbert came running with a panicked expression, frying pan in hand.

"What happened?! Are you ok?!"

His words spewed out, melding together in his German accent. Arthur turned to the white-haired man, a look of pain on his face. Though, it wasn't because he headbutted the wall hard enough to leave a dint. Well, not entirely.

"He just won't _listen_! No matter how polite I am about it, he just thinks I'm too embarrassed to admit it!"

His voice raised an octave, frustration bubbling to the surface. It was rare his emotions got the better of him in such a way, but when it did, he reserved it for times only Gilbert could see him.

Warm crimson eyes gazed at him in sympathy, a small smile quirking the German's lips. He took a step forward before wrapping Arthur in his arms and pulling him into a hug. Arthur relaxed immensely, exhaustion wearing down his bones. It wasn't even eight o'clock yet and he was ready for bed.

"Maybe you need to be more direct then."

Arthur froze, mind catching up with Gilbert's words. Slowly, he lifted his head and looked at Gil's face. All he saw was support, and he felt both his heart and his cheeks heat up at the realisation.

"Direct approach huh…"

Gilbert nodded in affirmation before a huge grin broke out across his face. His arms tightened a little, bringing their bodies closer together. Arthur's eyes widened at the position, hands landing on Gil's chest to stabilise himself. Then he jumped in surprise as a hand landed on his ass.

"Now that's dealt with, how about we go exercise?"

The German winked, eliciting a huff of amusement from the Englishman. With his right hand, Arthur began tracing circles through his shirt, a smirk playing at his lips. Meanwhile, his left hand roamed down the white-haired man's abs and to his belt, tugging the material a little to get across what he was thinking.

"I hope you're ready for a workout love~."

* * *

If there was ever a time Arthur wanted to throw his phone against the wall, it's right now. He's been trying really hard to keep his friendship with Alfred going, despite the current lack of understanding between them. But every time they have a chat through text, Al will randomly drop the 'I love you' bomb and completely ruin the conversation. Like right now.

{ Then Kiku said tht Feliciano had been 2 loud XD

Bloody Hell… }

{ Ah! Breaks over gotta head bck!

{ ttyl Artie! Love ya!

His brow twitched as he typed a reply, anger radiating from his being. He really wanted to punch someone, but the only person nearby was the sleeping Gilbert. He'd never punch Gil while he was mad like this. Even if he deserves it sometimes.

He reread the message three times before deleting it and starting again. Sending something so harsh wouldn't help the situation. But, Gilbert was right. If he wanted Alfred to get it through his thick bloody skull, then he'd have to be more direct. He just hoped it wouldn't lead to a nasty confrontation.

Look Alfred, I'm sick of telling you. I'm dating Gilbert, and I'm happy with him. Not to mention that I only see you as a friend. Please stop. }

He didn't receive a reply that day, but he didn't exactly get off scot free either. At the same time as yesterday, Alfred appeared at their door. However, it wasn't Arthur that answered. The Englishman having been on the loo when the doorbell rang.

When Gilbert opened the door, he had to blink at the sight. Alfred was stood in some fancy looking clothes, bouquet held out in front of him as he coyly looked to the garden in an attempt to hide his embarrassment. Stiffly, Gilbert raised his hands and clutched the offered flowers, eyes becoming hard as he considered just where to stick these.

"Thanks for the flowers, but we've lived here for quite a while."

The American jumped, head snapping over to look at Gilbert's smirk. His cheeks flushed as a look of horror bloomed on his face. Then, as quick as a flash, his expression became murderous. He was _pissed_ , and Gilbert found it funny that the angriest one here was the one intruding.

"What have you done to Arthur?"

Gilbert's face dropped, brow furrowing in disbelief. He couldn't believe what he just heard.

"Excuse me?!"

"You heard me! Where's Arthur?! What did you do to him?!"

The blonde shouted, stomping a foot over the threshold. Gilbert was officially done. With his free hand, he pushed Alfred out the door. Then he proceeded to slap Alfred across the face with his gift. Hurried steps sounded from behind him, but Gilbert didn't bother turning to look at who was coming closer.

Arthur gasped in shock, hand covering his mouth. He didn't know what happened, so he didn't make any presumptions. Instead, he stopped beside Gilbert while staring at Alfred with a worried gaze.

"What happened?!"

Gilbert growled, mouth set in a frown. Arthur looked to his partner, shocked by the noise he had released.

"This idiot made it sound like I'd hurt you or something just because it was me that answered the door."

Arthur turned back to Alfred, the younger blonde glaring daggers at Gilbert.

"Is that true?"

He didn't answer. But then, he didn't need to. His expression said it all, and Arthur felt somewhat betrayed. He knew this unrequited crush was still growing somehow, but he never thought it would curve down this path. It was becoming obsessive, and it honest to God scared him.

"Alfred."

The American turned to him instantly. His eyes shone with hope, but his expression dampened upon seeing Arthur's face. He looked so _hurt_ , and Al knew it was his fault.

"I think you should leave… and stop talking to me for a while."

A response didn't even have time to work at the forefront of Alfred's mind before the door was closed, the last glimpse he caught of Arthur being one that pained him deep in his soul. The older blonde looked so pained. As if it hurt him that Arthur had done what he had.

Alfred left his friend's house feeling guilty and ashamed. Yet, the fire in his heart didn't fade. Instead, it burned brighter than before. He would make it up to Arthur, by making him the happiest man in the world.

* * *

Two weeks passed by without another world from Alfred. Honestly, Arthur was grateful. It gave Gilbert time to calm down, and hopefully this meant that Al was trying to get over his crush. The looks would stop. The smiles filled with love would, at the very least, lessen. Instead of seeing this as a bad omen, Arthur chose to see this as a blessing.

He should have known it wouldn't be that easy.

He was writing an article for his work when his phone vibrated, the annoyingly jolly jingle telling him exactly who it was. He contemplated ignoring it, but if he left it too long, then Francis would no doubt ring him until he picked up. At least with texts he could plough them out within seconds and get back to work.

With a sigh, and part of his mind thanking Francis for at least getting him a break from this news report, Arthur grabbed his phone and opened the lock screen. With a simple tap, he found himself reading the eccentric blonde's text.

{ You need to go on Facebook right now, mon amie.

That was odd. Francis _never_ told Arthur to go on Facebook. He knew the bushy browed male hardly used the social media service due to its, quote on quote, redundancy. He had all of his friends and family as contacts on his phone. If he needed them, he would just text.

Knowing that, Francis still said he needed to go on Facebook? And, for some reason, even the text seemed to have a tone of desperation. Had something happened on Facebook that he couldn't just downright explain?

What are you talking about? }

Usually, he'd be all for calling the Frenchman names to garner a similar response, but this seemed important. And quite honestly, the fact Francis felt whatever this was needed immediate attention unsettled the Englishman.

A response came to him quicker than he thought it would. He hadn't even turned back to his computer before the screen flashed at him again. His nerves were on edge, but his lock screen managed to calm him down a little bit. Sure, it was somewhat cheesy having a picture of Gilbert as the display, but Arthur could care less what other people thought. Besides, anyone that could identify Gilbert as adorable, as well as hot, would attest that a picture of the white-haired man smiling unabashedly at the camera with short-bread crumbs around his mouth was the definition of a sunny scene.

Shaking his head from the memories – now was _not_ the time Arthur –, the blonde opened his phone again, eyes scanning the message. Again, it sounded like Francis was panicking, and it worried him to know his friend could be in trouble.

{ Just check Facebook! Quickly!

Deciding not to reply until he had checked, Arthur opened a new tab on his browser, typing the url for Facebook into the search bar. It was a testament to how little he went on the site when he had to actually find the webpage link on the Google search.

Once it loaded, he typed his details in and logged on. The page took it's time to load, anxiety building up in his gut as he saw names appear one by one. Then the posts started to come through, and Arthur had to refrain from sighing in relief. The first thing he had seen was a post from Lovino. It was one of those bizarre little text games, where you have to type in a letter to get someone's role for a film or something. Apparently, Arthur had found himself in the role of Feliciano's wife. He downright snorted at that. And, well, he couldn't _not_ comment on that, could he?

He sighed once more, shaking his head as his emotions calmed. Then something occurred to him. Had that really been all it was? Francis sounded like he was freaking out, but not in a 'haha this is funny' kind of way. It was more like 'someone's going to get hurt and I can't do anything' sort of desperation. There's no way something like this would kick start the Frenchman's worries.

While he contemplated what was going on, a notification popped in the corner of his screen. Curiosity got the better of him, and his eyes slid over to gaze at the little white box. It was a comment on a post he was apparently tagged in, by Gilbert no less. Now he was intrigued. He clicked the little bell in the top right, then clicked on Gil's comment notification.

The page loaded, and Arthur felt his entire being just, _drop_.

 **Alfred F. Jones**

Finally gonna ask **Arthur Kirkland** out! Wish me luck! ~

 **Like Comment Share**

 **Lovino Vargas** You realise he's dating Gil right deficiente?

 **Feliciano Vargas** Ah, I want to tell you to not call Alfred names but…

 **Lovino Vargas** But this is understandable

 **Feliciano Vargas** Sì

 **Kiku Honda** Alfred-San…

 **Francis Bonnefoy** Non non, this is too far mon amie

 **Gilbert Beilschmidt** Scheißkerl!

Arthur didn't know what to think anymore. He was passed annoyed and just straight up pissed. It was obvious to him now. He'd have to be blunt, even to the point where it might hurt Alfred. At this point, it was the only of Form

With that in mind, Arthur typed a comment. Of course, it was instantly liked by Gilbert, but he couldn't even feel pride in that fact. All he saw was red ebbing towards his central vision from his peripheral. Work would have to be put on hold while he found a way to calm down.

 **Ludwig Beilschmidt** This is not a funny joke Alfred.

 **Arthur Kirkland** Look Alfred, I've told you what has to be 6000 times already! We are friends! S!

Nothing comes back after that. He'd know. He sat there for fifteen minutes waiting for a rebuttal or response of any kind really. Silence was his answer.

He groaned in frustration. He was really wishing Gilbert hadn't gone to see Ludwig now. Which wasn't fair on either of them, but he was feeling far too stressed for what was supposed to be a day working on the computer.

Deciding to give up on the article for today, he walked to his bathroom and started running the tab. The usual routine went by as normal, like always. Music synced up with some good old Queen playing. Bath bomb disintegrating in the water to create a lovely forest of fireflies effect. When the tub was filled, he undressed before sinking into the water. Letting the soft melodies of a great band and the relaxing cool of the water bring him out of his mood.

He stayed there for half an hour before draining the bath and cleaning himself properly via shower. Once both his person and the bath were cleansed of Lush product, the Englishman stepped from his shower and set about doing chores until 10pm, before grabbing his latest book and reading by his bedroom window.

At about 1:50am, Arthur was startled awake by a loud bang. He blinked a few times, raising his hand to scrub sleep from his sockets. He noted the time on his phone, and the gentle patter of rain on the glass beside him, before bookmarking his page and getting to his feet. However, before he could clumber into bed and rest his head, the bang came again.

He waited a moment, brows furrowing in confusion as the silence lingered. Then it happened again, this time in quick succession, and Arthur growled at the annoying sound. Stomping his way through his house, Arthur quickly made his way to the front door, flinging it open once he was in range so he could tell whoever it was to _piss off_.

The sight he found before him was both familiar and shocking. The grandfather clock down the hall chimed for 2am just as lightning flashed in the distance. The light from the storm illuminating a pair of rectangular glasses. Blue eyes shining in unrestrained joy behind the spectacles.

Alfred cleared his throat, grin on his face as he bowed. Arthur could only feel dread and anger from the action.

"Arthur Kirkland, would you do me the honour of being my sidekick?"

Sidekick?! No way was he – no, Arthur, bigger picture please. The older blonde groaned in irritation. He was beyond done with this whole situation, and it was time to put his foot down.

"For the love of- Alfred. I swear I have made this _bloody_ obvious at this point. I. Am. Not. Interested. I'm happily dating Gil and I will _never_ see you that way. We ar S, got it?"

Rage was positively seeping off of his very being, and somehow, Alfred just couldn't see that.

"You say that but-"

"No buts! All you're doing is pushing me away Al! I don't want to talk to you anymore because I know it'll lead to you confessing again and me, unsuccessfully, telling you to _piss off_!"

Alfred stared at Arthur in shock, face slowly becoming more downcast the longer Arthur held his angered demeanour. He raised his hand, about to argue his case when,

"I _knew_ it. Verdammtes arschloch!"

"Gil!"

Arthur shouted in surprise, eyes widening at the sight. Gilbert was stood at the wooden gate to Arthur's house, soaking wet and gripping his suitcase in a vice like grip. Alfred turned to look too, eyes narrowing at the white-haired man, as if accusing him of something. Gilbert could only scoff in response.

Then, the Englishman snapped his fingers before dashing back into the house. Both men stood in the rain looked at the open entryway in confusion. Then, Arthur came back with a smile and an umbrella in hand. Gilbert understood instantly and smiled softly at his boyfriend. Alfred however, took it the wrong way, and turned to smirk at Gil.

He was about to brag about the situation, when Arthur walked straight past him and stopped before the German, umbrella held securely above both of their heads. Arthur returned Gil's smile, completely ignoring Al's presence.

Deciding to join in, Gilbert pulled the blonde towards himself, hugging the Englishman as the other laughed. He let the soft complaints of getting wet wash over him before saying anything himself.

"I'm back, mein geliebte."

Arthur blushed at that, lightly hitting Gilbert's chest as he looked in a random direction. Gilbert simply chuckled, grin breaking across his lips.

"What are you doing back, you git?"

At this, the atmosphere around the two sobered. Gilbert looked at Alfred again, the American glaring daggers at the German. Arthur seemed to understand instantly and turned to send his own glare back at Alfred, shocking the younger blonde.

"After I saw that post, I thought it'd be best to come check on my boyfriend."

The two stared Alfred down, the bespectacled man holding Gil's glare with ease. The rain fall got a little heavier, the droplets bouncing off the roof of the umbrella and disturbing the tense silence. Arthur pursed his lips, sending a quick glance into the sky before grabbing Gilbert's hand and pulling him towards the house. Knowing what the blonde was doing, Gil grabbed his suitcase and walked past Alfred, giving him a withering glance as he did.

When the two were indoors, Arthur turned back to Alfred, arms crossed and face downturned in anger once more.

"I've told you time and time again. I will _never_ see you that way. And honestly, I don't care if it hurts you right now, because all of the crap you've been pulling has been hurting me."

"And his boyfriend is _super_ pissed."

The white-haired man added, still glaring at Alfred. The American looked so defeated, that Arthur did genuinely feel bad. But he couldn't stop this train of emotion and venting. If he did, and he ended up helping Alfred out, then the cycle would repeat itself and he'd be back to square one. In a way, this was the only way to fight this.

The hand intertwined with his squeezed, and he couldn't help but send a grateful smile to Gilbert. That's when he saw the German grinning. His brow furrowed, and he opened his mouth to ask what he was smirking about, but never got chance to get the words out.

A moist tongue found it's way past his open lips, rubbing itself against his own tongue before the familiar warmth of lips pressed against his. The reaction was instant. His eyes lidded in lust and his arms wound themselves around the taller male's neck. His back arced into the more toned chest of his boyfriend, and his mouth began to move in rhythm with the other. After just a few seconds, his eyes were closed and his entire being was being poured into the kiss.

Gilbert's hands sat comfortably on Arthur's hips, fingers digging into his jumper. His eyes were lidded as he gazed at the blushing face of his love. They separated for just a desperate moment for air, then their lips were connected again. His tongue slid across the roof of Arthur's mouth, eliciting a moan from the Englishman.

Red iris' slid over to look at Alfred. The American was stood stock still, hurt twisting his expression. A small bud of guilt bloomed in Gilbert's chest, but he didn't tend to it. This man had been inadvertently hurting Arthur, and he couldn't spare a feeling like guilt for someone like that. Caring more for the man before him, Gilbert moved his gaze back to Arthur.

Dejected, Alfred eventually turned and walked away, head held low. Realisation began to blossom across the young blonde's mind, all of those rejections beginning to _truly_ make sense. Arthur was already happy, and all Alfred was doing was straining that for his own selfish desires. He went home that night contemplating how he could move on.

A few minutes after Alfred's departure, Arthur pulled away. They both breathed heavily, eyes lidded and eyes clouded with lust. Gilbert went to kiss Arthur again, but the blonde simply shook his head and rested his forehead against Gil's.

"That, was maybe a bit much."

As much as he could do so without dislodging his boyfriend, Gilbert shrugged.

"He had to learn, and sometimes it can only be done the painful way."

Arthur's green eyes began to clear, sadness settling in his heart. Now that it was, hopefully, over, he couldn't help but feel bad about it. Gilbert managed to catch this though, and raised his hand to the blonde's chin. Lifting the shorter's gaze to his own eyes.

"It was the only way."

Arthur sighed.

"I know… I just wish it wasn't."

Gilbert nodded in understanding, lightly knocking their heads together. They stood like that a moment longer, before Gilbert smirked. Using the hand that previously occupied Arthur's chin, Gil roamed lower until he found the perfect spot to place it.

Arthur actually jumped when something touched his ass, eyes wide in shock. He knew what it was the moment Gilbert began laughing, and punched the German in the chest for his troubles.

"Bloody wanker."

"Well, if that's what you want~."

"Wait wha-"

Arthur was cut off by Gilbert throwing the blonde over his shoulder, Arthur's shout of shock not deterring the white-haired male in the slightest.


End file.
